Virginia pond clean-ups reap rewards
Through the help of local volunteers, who rallied behind the couple, and support from the eThekwini Municipality, two of the large ponds at the bottom end of the reserve are now in a healthy state thanks to their efforts.
WHEN local resident, Mariet Becker and her husband James, began their project in 2017 to rid the ponds at Virginia Nature Reserve of alien invasive plants, they never envisioned the success they would enjoy.
Through the help of local volunteers, who rallied behind the couple, and support from the eThekwini Municipality, two of the large ponds at the bottom end of the reserve are now in a healthy state thanks to their efforts.
The 38 hectare reserve is home to several ponds which in recent times has been affected by water lettuce or Pistia stratiotes (Araceae) and Kariba weed or Salvinia molesta (Salviniaceae).
While the water lettuce was cleared after a few weekly clean-ups, the Karbia weed proved more difficult. The alien invasive plant, besides covering entire water surfaces also clogs waterways, reduces waterflow and provided a breeding place for mosquitoes. It also threatens indigenous aquatic plant and animal life.
“We would often walk our dogs in the reserve and that’s how we noticed the build-up over the ponds surface. If you didn’t know any better you would think it was just a dense carpet of grass, that’s how thick the cover was. The dense carpets of alien invaders on the water surface, blocked sunlight from reaching submerged plants and reduced the oxygen exchange at the water’s surface.
“We spent a number of our weekends at the ponds in the reserve cleaning up and it was back breaking hard work. Initially I felt we were fighting a losing battle because there were so many of the alien invaders and it seemed like an insurmountable task. But we stuck with it to the point where we’ve removed much of what had been clogging up the ponds. There is now two contained sections where the weed is still growing and the City have come on board. They plan on introducing an environmentally friendly herbicide to eradicate the weed,” she explained.
The pay-off for Becker and those who volunteered their time to clear the ponds has been the return of various birdlife and fish species.
“The community involvement in this project needs to be praised because it’s through their efforts that all this was possible. I’ve been privileged to see a white breasted cormorant and spur-winged goose resting and looking for food in the reserve. I think any birdlife flying over the reserve before would’ve thought this was just a carpet of grass so it’s great to see some of them fly into the reserve and cool down in the water,” she said.
Fellow clean-up member and enviornmentalist, Conn Hallgren, echoed Becker’s sentiments, saying he too was pleased with how healthy the ponds looked.
“Walking through the reserve is a great feeling seeing how much we’ve achieved. I think through the help of the City we will be able to finally remove the last sections of Kariba weed which will be great. There’s also a plan to fence off the reserve properly which we are looking forward to,” he said.
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